Tech Briefs Magazine - May 2021 - 18

Cleaner,

Faster Flight

The Flying-V incorporates the passenger cabin, cargo hold, and
fuel tanks in the wings, introducing the plane's namesake V-shape.

NASA -
confirmed that
its design concept
can meet the high-level
requirements and objectives
of the mission. Previously, NASA
signed a Space Act Agreement with
Virgin Galactic to collaborate on highspeed technologies. The project holds
many goals in common with NASA's X59 QueSST aircraft. Both hope to move
the industry to further research and
development of high-Mach A-to-B travel.
The basic parameters of the design
include a targeted Mach 3 certified deltawing aircraft that would have capacity for
9 to 19 people at an altitude above 60,000
feet and would also be able to incorporate custom cabin layouts to address customer needs including Business or First

Class
seating
arrangements.
The aircraft design
also aims to help lead the
way toward use of state-of-the-art
sustainable aviation fuel. Baselining
sustainable technologies and techniques
into the aircraft design early on is expected to also act as a catalyst to adoption in
the rest of the aviation community.
The design is geared around making
high-speed travel practical, sustainable,
safe, and reliable, while making customer
experience a top priority. Virgin Galactic
is designing the aircraft for a range of
operational scenarios including service
for passengers on long-distance commercial aviation routes. The aircraft would
take off and land like any other passenger
aircraft and be expected to integrate into
existing airport infrastructure and international airspace around the world.
Virgin Galactic is working closely with
international regulatory communities -
including the U.S. FAA - to ensure
compliance with safety and environmental standards.
Visit https://virgingalactic.com

Virgin Galactic's initial high-speed aircraft design includes a targeted Mach 3 certified delta-wing
aircraft with capacity for 9 to 19 people at an altitude above 60,000 feet. Virgin Galactic is working
with RollsRoyce to design and develop the plane's engine propulsion technology.

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Cov

ToC

The Clean Flying-V
The Flying-V - developed by Delft
University of Technology and the Royal
Netherlands Aerospace Centre - was
created to be a highly energy-efficient
long-distance airplane. The passenger
cabin, cargo hold, and fuel tanks have all
been placed in the wings, introducing
the V-shape that the plane is named after.
In the Flying-V - originally an idea
of TU Berlin student Justus Benad -
the design is not as long as an Airbus
A350 but it has the same wing span.
This allows the Flying-V to use the present infrastructure of gates and runways
at airports. The Flying-V carries about
the same number of passengers and the
same amount of cargo.
According to Dr. Roelof Vos, project
leader of the Flying-V at TU Delft, the
airplane was designed with " an oval
pressurized cabin that allows for an efficient structural design, with sufficient
design freedom to allow for proper
aerodynamic shaping. Our preliminary
calculations have shown that the aircraft has significantly less drag than a
modern widebody aircraft such as the
Airbus A350 or the Boeing 787, " he
said. " Structural calculations also have
shown that the structural weight is significantly lower. Based on those studies,
we've estimated that the Flying-V consumes 20% less fuel than an Airbus
A350 for the same flight. "
Vos explained that the Flying-V does
not have a separate horizontal tail plane.
" It is therefore stabilized by the location
of the wing's aerodynamic center, which
is behind the most aft center of gravity. "
Pitch and roll control, he explained, " is
provided by the segmented elevons at
the trailing edge of the outboard wing.
Yaw control is provided by the rudders,
which are integrated in the winglets.
The large sweep angle and low aspect
ratio of the aircraft imply that a relatively
large inclination angle is required to
attain enough lift during low-speed conditions. In other words, the aircraft
Tech Briefs, May 2021

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Tech Briefs Magazine - May 2021

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